“Our efforts are now concentrated on ensuring they do not cross over to Somalia and that is why additional police have been brought in,” said the informant as quoted by the mainstream media house.

The new developments emerge barely three days after the Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet deployed a special team of police officers to comb the area.

Until last week, detectives revealed that the abductors were believed to be hiding in a manyatta in Assa village of Garsen, Tana River county.

So far, police officers involved in rescue operations have managed to arrest about a hundred people from Assa village, most of whom are alleged to have facilitated the abduction and subsequent disappearance of the kidnappers.

The arrested individuals have been detained at the Gamba and Minjila police stations.

Even as this happens, not a single terrorist cell has claimed responsibility in the abduction of Silvia Romano.